Review of Stake Land (2010) by Craig H — 25 Mar 2012

This independent production feels like a cross between "The Road" and "I Am Legend". After an epidemic causes people around the world to turn into vampires (and we're talking feral, bloodthirsty monsters here, not sexy, effete pale Europeans), a teenage boy's family is attacked and killed by one of the beasts and he is taken under the wing of a vampire hunter named "Mister" (played by Nick Damici, who, up to this point, has been mostly a small bit-part character actor).

They travel cross-country, from south to north seeking "New Eden", because the vampires dislike cold weather. They hunt vampires along the way when they encounter them, but their largest source of trouble comes not from vampires, but from the Brotherhood, a quasi-religious gang of normal humans who believe that the epidemic is God's work, so they kidnap others, deliberately turning them into vampires to be used as weapons.

The Brotherhood is led by the twisted Jebedia Loven (played by "Fringe's" Michael Cerveris). They also encounter other regular folks on the road, including a nun who is almost raped (played by a very old looking Kelly McGillis) and a young pregnant woman who joins them on the road.

Damici is solid as "Mister", as is Connor Paolo as Martin, the teenager who comes under the tutelage of Mister. Only the second feature from director Jim Mickle, this film is appropriately grim and somber, and looks good and flows well (it introduces more problems than it solves, but that's most films for you).

Rented this on a whim and wasn't disappointed. Woodchuck sez, "Check it out.".